Monster Media Center PC

You'd have to be crazy to build your own PC these days. Value and selection have never been greater--Dell and HP are selling computers for under $300 that are more than adequate for Internet surfing and home office use. Plus, constructing a computer from scratch can be a colossal headache. The PC-building hobbyist gets no customer support and no warranties in case things go wrong.

But in the technology department at POPULAR MECHANICS, we are a little crazy. We get our kicks from difficult projects based on unproven technologies. A year and a half ago, we built and gave away our first Monster PC, which was a powerhouse and, frankly, quite a looker. But at the end of the day, it was still a conventional computer. This year, we wanted to build a machine that was not only technologically sophisticated, but also broke new ground in terms of how it was used. Our plan was to create a living room PC based on the Microsoft Media Center OS. We wanted something that could play both high-definition movies and the latest games on a big-screen TV. We wanted the PC to be controllable from the couch via a wireless keyboard, mouse and remote control, but we also wanted a touch-sensitive built-in screen. In short, our machine should be a perfect marriage of utilitarian computer and high-powered home entertainment center.

There are a lot of Media Center PCs on the market, but none of them quite nails this balance. For help procuring the latest cutting-edge components for our project, we worked with online computer superstore Newegg.com. In addition to a huge selection of high-tech parts, Newegg shared its expertise about what components work well together.

For those who would dare try this at home, we learned a few lessons along the way. We looked into getting a boxed copy of the Windows Media Center operating system, but Microsoft doesn't sell it directly to the public--you can only get it with a new machine. Luckily, we were able to get a copy of Media Center from resellers through Newegg. Unfortunately, these "non-OEM" copies, though perfectly legal, offer exactly zero customer support. (Microsoft says that Media Center functionality will be built into most versions of its upcoming Vista operating system.) Also, we fell in love with the SilverStone LC18B case with a built-in touchscreen, but to get that screen to work, we had to install some Tablet PC functionality into the OS. And even though we generally advise against jumping headfirst into new data storage formats, we just couldn't resist shoving a Blu-ray drive inside (and we do mean shove--we had to remove the faceplate to get the drive to fit in our case). We also had to try out several IDE cable configurations before our PC could recognize the drive.

Why go through all this trouble? We did it for you, of course. We created a fire-breathing, high-def Media Center PC with over 1.5TB of storage, a screamingly fast Intel Core 2 Extreme X6800 processor, a TV tuner, Creative surround-sound card and speakers, a BFG dual-SLi card for stunning graphics, and a Bluetooth wireless keyboard and mouse. And we want you to win it. Starting Nov. 15, go to our Web site to enter, and remember--we offer absolutely no warranty!

It's What's Inside That Counts

Brains

CPU CHIP: INTEL CORE 2 EXTREME X6800

PRICE: $950 /// Intel's second-gen dual-core chip runs at 2.93 GHz, and has 4MB of level-two cache and a 1066-MHz front-side bus. That means it can crunch data fast and move it faster, without wasting a lot of power or producing too much heat.

MOTHERBOARD: ASUS P5N32-SLI SE DELUXE

PRICE: $230 /// The motherboard is the backbone of any PC. We picked this Asus board because it is one of the few out there that can support all the crazy components we wanted and still fit inside our case.

MEMORY: OCZ GOLD PC2-8000

PRICE: $370 /// We slapped in 2GB of DDR2 memory with gold-layered heatspreaders for increased airflow.

PRICE: $700 /// This is one of the trickier pieces of equipment we had to work with. Sony's BWU100A Blu-ray drive is so new that the software to make it actually play hi-def Blu-ray movies wasn't available when we installed it. (Don't worry, the update will be ready before a winner is announced.) Even so, the Blu-ray disc's potential as a storage format is formidable-a single disc holds 25GB to 50GB, enabling you to back up entire hard drives to a few discs.

DVD BURNER: NEC ND3550A

PRICE: $30 /// We had an extra drive bay, so we decided to put in a 16X workhorse drive. In our experience, the NEC ND3550A is the most reliable dual-layer, dual-format DVD burner on the market.

Peripherals

SPEAKERS: CREATIVE GIGAWORKS S750

PRICE: $430 /// You'll need to set up the Monster PC on your own TV, but you can throw away your existing audio system. That's because we're hooking the PC up with Creative's THX-certified, 700-watt, 7.1-channel, surround-sound system.

KEYBOARD/MOUSE: LOGITECH DINOVO MEDIA DESKTOP

PRICE: $156 /// This three-piece Bluetooth wireless combo keyboard and laser mouse set lets you sit back and do your computing from the couch.

REMOTE CONTROL: LOGITECH HARMONY 550 UNIVERSAL REMOTE

PRICE: $137 /// Complementing the diNovo Desktop is this universal remote designed to work with the Microsoft Media Center.

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